A FRENCH GAS ATTACK BEING LAUNCHED AGAINST THE GERMANS FROM A POSITION 



MIDWAY BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND LINE TRENCHES: 



PHOTOGRAPHED FROM A SCOUT AIRPLANE 



fort is made to carry the maximum load 

 of bombs. But it is evident that this is 

 possible only at the expense of the speed 

 of the airplane and especially of the 

 quantity of gasoline and oil it can carry, 

 thereby limiting its radius of action. 



Accordingly, two very different types of 

 machines have been invented — one very 

 swift, able to fly at a speed of over no 

 miles per hour, but carrying only 700 

 pounds of bombs (Breguet type) ; the 

 other very slow, since it can make only 

 80 miles an hour, but able to carry 4,400 

 pounds of projectiles (Caproni type). 



The first type is used day and night 

 on the French and English fronts, where 

 the enemy has his most powerful planes. 



AIRPLANES WHICH ARE USED AT NIGHT 

 ONLY 



The airplanes of the second type, be- 

 cause of their low speed, can only be 

 used over the front lines by night. They 

 would be brought down, without fail, 

 should they venture within the enemy 

 lines by day, where they would only be 

 the playthings of the swift hostile battle 

 planes. 



In regard to what may be expected 

 from the entrance into line of American 

 air squadrons, this spring, it may be said 

 that although the Allies have always held 

 the aerial superiority over their enemies, 



at the cost of very heavy sacrifices, the 

 advantage in our favor has never been 

 great enough for us to risk a decisive 

 battle, that would forever give us the ab- 

 solute mastery of the air. Whole squad- 

 rons have been beaten down, but the de- 

 struction of the enemy's air fleet has not 

 yet been accomplished, owing to the lack 

 of sufficiently powerful means. 



This is not, however, an impossible con- 

 ception, and in the future, when Amer- 

 ica's air forces arrive to reinforce those 

 of her allies, it is possible that the an- 

 nihilation of the enemy's fleet may be 

 undertaken, after several days of sus- 

 tained battle at the outset. 



In case our forces prove the stronger, 

 the enemy will have no> other alternative, 

 to prevent the loss of his air squadrons, 

 than to refuse battle by not flying; but 

 when our bombing squadrons intervene 

 with an effect so deadly as to compel his 

 fighting planes to give battle, he will then 

 bring on the struggle in which the Ger- 

 man air fleet must succumb. 



I do not pretend to foretell the future. 

 I can simply tell you this. The decisive 

 air battle has not yet been fought, al- 

 though gigantic land battles have taken 

 place. America will, I hope, have the 

 honor of fighting this battle at the side 

 of her allies, and it is probable that the 

 road to victory will then be opened by 

 way of the air. 



26 



